So you may or may not be aware that I am *cough* in my fifties *cough* and some of you aren’t quite as ancient. So, I grew up in the swinging sixties and seventies. I think we who did like to think of the time as pivotal in our culture, especially pop culture. And, since I was but a babe in the 1960s my recollections might be skewed from the child’s POV.
We have a lot of references we use that people who weren’t born yet, might not get. For Sixties and Seventies kids they’re part of our world, our psyches, our language.

So, what should I call this new feature “Pop History Princess” or “Slip Stream?” Are you interested in something like this? Have any questions?

http://www.pophistorydig.com/?tag=erich-segal-yellow-submarine

Here’s one of those seventies phrases I must at least think once a month when someone apologizes:

LOVE MEANS NEVER HAVING TO SAY YOU’RE SORRY.

Do you get the reference? Raise your hand if you did.

This is a line from a book and movie: Love Story, written by Erich Segal. I haven’t read the book or seen the movie in ages. I don’t really have to to tell you about it. This is probably the only line the vast majority of people remember from the movie. But, if you hadn’t seen the film or read the book is it part of your lexicon? Or, does it have the same force for you that my parents phrases had for me.

LOVE STORY is a 1970 romantic drama film written by Erich Segal, who also authored the best-selling novel of the same name. It was directed by Arthur Hiller and starred Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw.

A tragedy, the film is considered one of the most romantic of all time by the American Film Institute (#9 on the list). It was followed by a sequel, Oliver’s Story (1978), starring O’Neal with Candice Bergen.

Love Story also features John Marley and Ray Milland. It included the film debut of Tommy Lee Jones in a minor role. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Story_%281970_film%29

Here’s something I may have heard but ignored as ridiculous. Apparently, former Vice President, Al Gore, claims that this story was based on his life at Harvard. Here’s what it says on Wikipedia:

Al Gore has often stated that the plot is based on his life at Harvard; in 1997 Segal explained that “only the emotional family baggage of the romantic hero…was inspired by a young Al Gore. But it was Gore’s Harvard roommate, Tommy Lee Jones who inspired the half of the character that was a sensitive stud, a macho athlete with the heart of a poet”. Erich Segal had met both Mr. Jones and Mr. Gore at Harvard in 1968, when he was there on sabbatical. Wikipedia

It is interesting to note that Segal first wrote the story as a screenplay and sold it to the studio, Paramount. At the Studio’s insistence Segal wrote the book as pre-publicity for the film. At the time of it’s release it was the sixth highest grossing film of all time. Since then it has fallen in the standings but remains with in the top 40 highest grossing movies.

Why was this such a popular movie? Like in TWILIGHT the couple was young and beautiful, they both had bright futures. It was about societal position, the meaning of love and independence and family at a time when that was being questioned. I don’t think if you didn;t live through it you can grasp the cultural changes society was undergoing then. The only thing I could relate it to is the way the internet has changed our lives so many factors in the sixties and seventies changed society.

Birth control, the women’s movement, the war, an increase in scientific knowledge that threatened to blow the doors off our understanding of the universe, and a much more powerful youth culture, all these things were big changes. This story slotted into all of that and had the right amount of pathos to make you cry like a baby.

There was also a song tie in. The song became very popular and like “My Heart Will Go On” from TITANIC or “Time of my Life” for DIRTY DANCING surely helped to tie the whole thing up with a bow for the public. You can hear Andy WIlliam’s popular version HERE, or, find Nana Mouskouri’s version HERE. Yes, this was once pop-music.

Synopsis

Oliver Barrett IV, a wealthy jock from a stuffy WASP family on his way to a Harvard degree and a career in law . . . Jenny Cavilleri, a sharp-tongued, working-class beauty studying music at Radcliffe . . .

Opposites in nearly every way, Oliver and Jenny are kindred spirits from vastly different worlds. Falling deeply and powerfully, their attraction to one another defies everything they have ever believed—as they share a passion far greater than anything they dreamed possible . . . and explore the wonder of a love that must end too soon.

One of the most adored novels of our time, this is the book that defined a generation—a story of uncompromising devotion, of life as it really is . . . and love that changes everything.

Oliver Barrett IV comes from a family of wealthy, well-respected Harvard University graduates. At a library, the Harvard student/hockey player meets Jennifer “Jenny” Cavalleri, a quick-witted working-class Radcliffe College student, and they quickly fall in love.

Upon graduation from college, the two decide to marry against the wishes of Oliver’s father, who severs ties with his son.

Without his father’s financial support, the couple struggles to pay Oliver’s way through Harvard Law School with Jenny working as a private-school teacher. They rent the top floor of a house near the Law School at 119 Oxford Street, in the Agassiz neighborhood of Cambridge adjacent to a laundromat. Oliver graduates third in his class and takes a position at a respectable New York law firm.

Now the 24-year-olds are ready to start a family, but they can’t seem to conceive and they consult a medical specialist; after many tests, Oliver is informed that Jenny is terminally ill. Her exact condition is never stated explicitly, but she appears to have leukemia.

As instructed by his doctor, Oliver attempts to live a “normal life” without telling Jenny of her condition, but she finds out after confronting her doctor about her recent illness. She begins costly cancer therapy, and soon Oliver is desperate enough over the mounting expenses to seek financial relief from his father. The senior Barrett asks if he “got some girl in trouble,” and Oliver says yes instead of revealing the truth.

From her hospital bed, Jenny makes funeral arrangements with her father, then asks for Oliver. She tells him to not blame himself, then asks him to embrace her tightly before she dies. They lie in her bed together.

As a grief-stricken Oliver leaves the hospital, his father is waiting to apologize. Oliver replies with what Jenny once told him: “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” Wikipedia

The novel tells of “Love Story” is romantic and funny, yet a tragic story. It is the story of two young college grads, whose love was stronger than any of the tests life threw at them. Oliver Barrett IV, a Harvard jock and wealthy heir to the Barrett fortune and legacy, and Jennifer Cavilleri, the quick-witted daughter of a Rhode Island baker. Oliver (Ollie) was expected to follow in his father’s huge footsteps, while Jennifer (Jenny), a music major studying at Radcliffe College planned to study in Paris. From very different worlds, Oliver and Jenny immediately attracted and their love deepened. The story of Jenny and Ollie is a story of two young people who come from two separate worlds and are joined together in the most unlikely of ways.

Upon graduation from college, the two decide to marry against the wishes of Oliver’s father, who thereupon severs all ties with his son. Without his father’s financial support, the couple struggles to pay Oliver’s way through Harvard Law School, with Jenny working as a private school teacher. Graduating third in his class, Oliver gets several job offers and takes up a position at a respectable New York law firm. Jenny promises to follow Oliver anywhere on the East Coast. The couple moves to New York City, excited to spend more time together, rather than in working and studying. With Oliver’s new income, the pair of 24-year-olds decide to have a child. After Jenny fails to conceive, they consult a medical specialist, who after repeated tests, informs Oliver that Jenny is ill and will soon die as she is suffering from leukemia.

As instructed by his doctor, Oliver attempts to live a “normal life” without telling Jenny of her condition. Jenny nevertheless discovers her ailment after confronting her doctor about her recent illness. With their days together numbered, Jenny begins a costly cancer therapy, and Oliver soon becomes unable to afford the multiplying hospital expenses. Desperate, he seeks financial relief from his father. Instead of telling his father what the money is truly for, Oliver misleads him. From her hospital bed, Jenny speaks with her father about funeral arrangements, and then asks for Oliver. She tells him to avoid blaming himself, and asks him to embrace her tightly before she dies. When Mr. Barrett realizes that Jenny is ill and that his son borrowed the money for her, he immediately sets out for New York. By the time he reaches the hospital, Jenny is dead. Mr. Barrett apologizes to his son, who replies with something Jenny had once told him: “Love means never having to say you’re sorry”…and breaks down in his arms.

The movie is iconic. And the Al Gore tie-in is too bizarre. Thanks for commenting.

JenMJanuary 12, 2014 @ 10:18 AM

Definitely keep the feature! I’m 50 ***cough*** myself so I can relate. I work with a bunch of twenty somethings and I’m pretty good about not using cultural references that they don’t get, but my boss does it all the time. It’s pretty funny to then see the rather baffled looks on our younger colleagues’ faces.

It’s funny to talk to some kids about our collection of typewriter ribbon tins. It’s not the typewriter they question yet – it’s the ribbon. Thanks for commenting!

JeanMPJanuary 12, 2014 @ 12:56 PM

Hadn’t heard the Al Gore reference before, if I had, I had forgotten it. I am now over 50, so I am familiar with the movie and the book. Interesting thinking back on things that were so commonplace for our generation and now you get looked at funny if you talk about some of it.

Thanks for commenting. I hope it’s cool for folks who don’t remember the reason for the reference, too.

Hey guys! The pages and posts here are looking a bit weird as I iron out some theme issues. Sorry!

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